1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains generally to practice ranges where the participant plays by hitting, throwing, or kicking a ball. More particularly, the present invention discloses a method and apparatus for providing users of a range having targets with an automated betting system.
2. The Prior Art
In this disclosure, the concept of “range” is used in the general sense to mean a practice area for a ball-based game, such as golf putting or hitting, baseball pitching and hitting, soccer ball kicking, and football throwing and kicking. Ranges, in general, have typical configurations for each type of ball-based game. Two common ranges found in the US are golf ranges and baseball ranges; the baseball ranges may be further divided into throwing (pitching) ranges and hitting cages.
Golf ranges have typical configurations, well-known to those that use them. There is an entry point, where the player purchases some quantity of balls from the range. There may be minor variances in the pay schedule (regular players, walk-ons, etc.) but buying the balls is the player's payment for using the range. The golf balls are typical stored in baskets or in a large hopper which dispenses a number of balls on demand (similarly to a coin dispenser) into a basket. There is no individually assignable ID on a per golf ball basis. The player then takes the balls to the tee or matt area, and hits them out into the range (or putting green) until they are gone.
Baseball throwing and hitting areas are similar—a player buys a certain number of balls for throwing, or buys a certain amount of time for hitting, and uses the balls or the time until done. The “scoring” is either non-existent or manual, and if manual is done by the player. Similar situations are found for the less common ranges such as those using a football or a soccer ball; the player buys either time or a number of balls, and the scoring (if any) is manual, carried out by the player.
Returning to golf ranges, a typical driving range will have various markers for distance placed throughout the range. A player hits a ball, and follows it with their eyes (if they can). After the ball hits the ground, a player must do as best they can to make a visual estimate of the distance they hit the ball, using the nearest distance marker. That completes the play.
There is some variation to the standard golf ranges found in England. There, several installations have added permanent targets in parts of the range. These targets are designed similarly to skee-ball type targets found in arcade games. The target is a set of two or more concentric rings, with drainage holes for balls that enter a ring (the drainage holes are similar to the those found in the last hole of a miniature golf course, where the ball follows a drain permanently installed underground back to the register or cashier booth). The targets are typically made of cement with a fabric covering. In some installations, the golf balls have RFID tags in them, and the balls entering the drain in the concentric circles of the target are read as they roll through the drain pipe. This allows the range to keep “scores” as golfers hit balls into the rings. Another fixed detector-style system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,743,815 to Helderman. Helderman discloses a golf driving range having a plurality of RFID sensors at fixed, permanent locations, including along a back wall which a golfer may hit if the golfer hits a ball far enough. Both Helderman and the ranges found in the UK use only RFID readers (sensors) in fixed locations, permanently installed on or under the range.
The current range play options for golfers is quite limited. In addition, there is no regular, reliable means for placing bets on games between players using targets on the range.
The current range of play available for baseball, football, soccer, and other ball-based games is even more limited than for golf range users. All have virtually no automated scoring, and none have any way of making wagering or winning games available to a player other than the simple “one-shot” type of game (i.e., a hole-in-one for golf, a single basket from a single location thrown one at a time for basketball, etc.). Even for those types of games, the entire range is typically devoted to that one game whilst it is being played (making it unavailable for players who do not want to wager). This is due to the fact that the logistics associated with manually watching over the game is too high to do anything but play a simple (one-shot style) wagering game, or have the range open to non-wagering play.